Silas h



UNITED v STATES PATENT OFFICE.

SILAS H.:MOSHEE, OE oHIoAeO, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOE OE oNE-,HALETO THOMAS J. WHEELER, OE SAME PLACE.

FEED-WATER PUmFIER..

' SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 373,191, dated November 15,1887.

Application filed October 12, 1886. Serial No. 215,977. (No model.)

I To all whom it may concern:

I within the boiler.

Be it known that I, SILAS H. MosHEE,"of Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Il1inois,have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Feed -Water Purifiers for Steam-Boilers; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description thereof, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to the letters of reference marked theren,which formapart of this specification. Y

This invention has for its primary object to provideimproved meansforclarifying the feedwater introduced into steam-boilers, and to thus prevent deposition of sediment and Scale It also includes among its objects, as preferably constructed, to provide improved means for carrying off surface irnpurities, and particularly the scale that may be detached from the boiler and brought to the surface of the water therein, either by itself or in conjunction with the means first mentioned for clarifying the water as it is introduced.

- The first-mentioned improvement may also be employed without the second, if desired. I

rlhe nature of the invention will be understood from the following description and the accompanying drawings.

Figure l of the drawings illustrates a steamboiler in vertical central longitudinal section, having all my improvements applied thereto. Fig. 2 is an end view of the open funnel or mouth-piece located within the boiler and constructed with a dam,over which the surface impurities may flow into the pipe leading from said mouth-piece out of the boiler to the settling-drum. o Fig. 3is a detail.

Ais a steam-boiler, of which A' is the dome, and A2 are the tubes.

B is a feed-water pipe leading from a pump or preferably from a heater into the boiler A desirably above the water-line therein, which water-line is represented by the line ct a. y

The pipe B by preference passes in a horizontal direction above the water line to a point beneath the dome A', where it rises, as shown, the vertical extension being lettered B. In this arrangement of the feed-pipe the upper end of the vertical part B is open, and is provided with a iiaring mouth or cup, B2, over the edge or rim of which the water is in-` tended to be discharged in a relatively-thin body.

C is a conical plate arranged over the bowl or wide mouth B2, with its larger diameter downward,and provided about its lower edge with an inwardly-directed iiange, C', the free edge c of which extends'beneath the upper edge of the fiaring mouth B2, so that the water discharged from said mouth B2 will fall upon the shelf C and will overflow at the edge c. neath the inverted cone G is arranged a conical cup, D, opening upward and surrounding and supported by the vertical pipe B. The water falling from the edge c of the shelf G descends into the cup D and finds its escape over the edge of said cup into a similar but larger cup, E, beneath it,and also surrounding and supported by the pipe B.

F is a pipe leading from the lowermost cup, E, at a point below its upper edge, and forms part of a duct for carrying the water out of the boiler to a settling-chamber. It is here shown in full lines as extending downward to a point a few inches above the water-line a c,

where it delivers into a separate part,G, .of

such outflow-pipe, and in dotted lines as continuous with the pipe G. The lower end of the pipe F, when separate from the pipe G, is desirably compressed, so as to give a relatively wide and thin outlet, f, at its lower end, and the lower end of said pipe is also preferably c-urvedin the direction of the pipe G, into which it discharges. with a fiaring open end, G', arranged beneath the end of the pipe F in position to receive the water discharged from the latter.

The pipe G, for the first object of my invention, may be indifferently located at or above the Water-line a a, and may be continuous with the pipe F; but, having reference to the second object of the invention-Viz., to carry off the surface impurities of the water in the boiler-said pipe G will be located with its mouth G', desir-ably, in the position shown in Fig. l, or partly below the water-line a a. In

this case the mouth G of the pipe G is widened laterally or in a horizontal direction and provided` with a dam, G2, having its upper. edge, g, located a distance of an inch or so be- The pipe Gis provided IOO into a yertical drum, H, having therein asuspended filter, I, the bottom t' of which is perforated. The lower end of the drum H discharges into a settling-chamber, J, which is preferably of spherical form, and is provided at its lowest point with a valved outlet-pipe, J'. From the upper portion of the lter I a pipe, L, leads to the lower part of the boiler A.

The pipes G and L are provided with suitable valves between the boiler and the drum H, as shown, and in addition to the stop-valve the pipe L is provided with a pet-cock, L', to discharge air.

lThe primary invention herein set forth proceeds upon the well-established fact that the separation of the solids of water is promoted by heat, and the primary object of the construction above described is to expose the admitted water to a higher heat than that to which it is raised by an ordinary external heater before discharging it into the mass of water within the boiler. To this end the water is exposed repeatedly in thin falling bodies in the steam-space of the boiler as it descends from the rim of the month B2 to the outlet f ofthe pipe F, the steam occupying the steamspace of the boiler` in which these parts are located being of much higher temperature than the water belowv it. As a consequence, when very impure water is introduced into the boiler, it has been found that the water discharged by the pipe F is thick wit-l1 mud or sediment, this having been demonstrated by an experiment consisting in the attachment of a lateral branch, F, to the pipe F, leading out of the side of the dome, as shown by dotted lines in Fig. l.

It is to be noted that the employment of a series of' overflow-cups exposes the water in thin sheets in its descent without spraying it, and therefore without spattering it against the sides of the boiler or dome.

The drum H, having within it the smaller and concentric filter-shell I, presents an annular outer space into which the pipe G discharges and in which the water descends to the bottom of the lilter. The principal part of the solid matter carried by the water is here precipitated and falls into the mud-drum7 or receptacle J, while the water rises through the filter, where it is further clarified, and finally passes through the pipe L into the boiler. The pipe G being open to boiler-pressure, the circulation is principally etfected by change of temperature in the settling-drum H, except when the water-line is below the dam G2, when of course it will be influenced by variation in head. The circulation is found to be entirely satisfactory, even while the water-level in the boiler is above the dam G2; but it is thought to be promotive of such circulation to incline the lower end of the pipe F, as shown, in order to give an impulse to the water in the direction of the pipe G.

When the open mouth G of the pipe G is arranged in the position shown partly below the waterline, any impurities upon the surface of the water will be drawn into said pipe and deposited in the settling-chamber H J. By locating this mouth ofthe pipe G beneath the dome it better gathers such floating impurities, because the withdrawal of steam from the dome tends to produce a surface-current from all directions toward this point. Location of the ascending-pipe B and its attachments in the dome gives the advantage of a greater fall to the water and strongerimpetus .thereto as it enters the pipe G. It is, however, to be understood that the various parts mentioned may be elsewhere located in the boiler, if desired` and the pipeB may be without an upward extension, lB', or may open downwardly.

It will be noticed that the pipe G is shown as being zigzag or deflected downwardly and upwardly in a vertical plane between its month and the head of the boiler, and that the descending sections are longer and more nearly horizontal than the ascending sections. This construction, or probably the first descent located on the mouth-piece G, is found in the practice to be promotive of better circulation, though a straight pipe G works successfully.

The drawings not being made to a scale, I may add that in afty-horse-power boiler having a thirty-six-inch dome I have made the cup E about fourteen inches in diameter and the cup D about twelve inches in diameter and other parts in proportion, substantially as shown, the space between the edge or rim of the cup D and the flange C being about half an inch. The bell-mouth G of the pipe G is about six inches wide, and the pipes are one and a half inch in diameter.

I prefer to make the mud-chamber Jspherical in form, with the outlet at its lowest point for the purpose of facilitating the work of blowing it out. The chamber H should also be of conical construction at its lower end for the same purpose and to better conduct the precipitate into the chamber J.

The spherical form'of the mud-chamber .I enables the same to be made of cast-iron, and at the same time of suitable strength, while it gives both the narrow neck at the top for conneetion with the conical bottoni of the filterchamber H and ample interior capacity, together with a hopper-shaped bottom, to facilitate the discharge of mud therefrom by simply blowing off.

The first object of my invention will obviously be attained if the pipe G be a more direct continuation of the pipe F; but to attain the second object also it is needful to make it with a separate mouth at the waterline of the boiler, substantially as shown. Plainly, the pipe G may be separately used as a skimmer without using the inlet-pipe shown or (while using such inlet-pipe and its attachments) in connection with a pipe, F', leading to the settling-chamber independently of the pipe G- as, for example, by prolongation of the branch of the pipe F. (Shown in dotted lines.)

The dam g, or its equivalent wide and hori- 'zontal bottom of the mouth G, submerged a short distance only below the surface of the water, is favorable to a more eective skimming of the water than the relatively-narrow and more deeply-submerged openings for such pipes heretofore employed.

I claim` as my inventionl: The combination, with a steam-boiler, of a feed-Water inlet-pipe having its delivery end open in the steam-space of the boiler, two or more open cups arranged to successively receive the water from the'feed-pipe and-to discharge the same by overiow, an outflow-pipe leading from the lowermost of said -c'ups out of the boiler, a settling-chamber connected with said outflow-pipe, and a pipe leading from the settling-chamber back into the boiler, substantially as `and for the purposes set forth.

2. vThe combination, with a boiler, of an inlet feed-water pipe having its delivery end directed upwardly and provided with a bellmouth, a superposed hood provided with an inner annular shelf at its lower margin, a cup, as D, placedbelow the shelf, a subjacent cup,

` as E, a pipe leading from said cup E and prolonged so as to convey the water from said cup E `out of the boiler, a settling-chamber into which said outiioW-pipe delivers, and a return-pipe leading from the settling-chamber back to the boiler, substantially as described.

3. The combination, with a boiler, ofa feedwater inlet-pipe having itsdelivery end open in the steam-space of the boiler, two or more fnopen cups arranged to successively receive the water from the feed-pipe and to discharge the same by overflow, a pipe leading downward from the lowermost of said cups, a separate prolongation of said outliow-pipe leading out of the boiler and having its receiving end at the normal water-line of the boiler, a settlingchamber connected with said prolongation of theoutflow-pipe, and a pipe leading from the settling-chamber back into the boiler.

4. The combination, with a steam-boiler, of a settling chamber comprising an upright outer chamber, H, a spherical receptacle, J, below said chamber H and connected with the bottom of the latter, a filter supported in the upper end of the chamber H, a pipe leading from the boiler to the chamber H exterior to the filter, a return-pipe leading from the filter to' the boiler,V and a discharge-pipe leading from the bottom of the spherical chamber J,

substantially as described.

5. The combination,with a steam-boiler, an external settling-chamber, and areturn-pipe leading from said settlingchamber to the boiler,of an outow-pipe leading from the Water-line of the boiler to the-settling-chamber, the said out-dow-pipe being provided with an open mouth located at the water-level and bent in a vertical pla-naso that portions thereof have an ascending and other portions a descending direction, substantially as shown.

6. The combination,with a steamboiler, an external settlingchambenand an outlow-pipe leading to said settling-chamber, of a mouth applied to said outdoW-pipe, which mouth is relatively broad and has its lower edge horizontal and located slightly below the normal water-level of the boiler, and an inductionpipe arranged to deliver into said open mouth of the outiioW-pipe, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

Invtestimony that I claim the foregoing as my invention I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses. i

SILAS H. MOSHER.

Witnesses:

C. CLARENCE PooLE,

WILLIAM RoovAAR'r. 

